13
Tessa
After the weekend isover, the fear of dropping Emily off at school sinks in, and I don’t know if I can do it. Chris can show back up at any time. And what’s to say the school will make sure she doesn’t get taken by him again? My heart can’t handle that again.
Instead of Damon taking me to work, I decide to be dropped off with Emily and have a conversation with the school administration. They have to do something to make sure this never happens again. Rules need to be followed and implemented, end of story. Or I will never feel safe leaving Emily.
The principal isn’t in yet, so I wait for her. My boss understands what’s going on, and said it’ll be okay if I’m a little late today. I’m glad they are so understanding, but they kind of have to be after a situation like Emily’s. As much as I need the job, she comes first no matter what. This is about not only her safety but the other children. The school needs to take responsibility and fix the flaws within their system. Parents shouldn’t have to worry about things like this happening while in their care.
I sit in the chair, watching kids come and go from the office, wondering what I am going to say exactly. There was no need to come across as a crazy mother who is bashing the school or anything. But they need to understand the severity of their actions. They are the protectors of our children while out of our care. This means they should be keeping an eye on them, and that didn’t happen with Emily. In fact, they utterly and completely failed.
When the principal finally comes into the office, I quickly introduce myself. “I was wondering if I could speak to you privately. I’m Emily’s mom. I’m sure you heard about the situation last week.”
“Yes, of course. Let’s go into my office.” She looks caught off guard.
I follow her inside and shut the door.
She maneuvers behind her desk, sits down, and folds her hands atop the desk. “I’m so sorry for what happened. The teacher feels terrible, and even asked Emily multiple times if she knew she was supposed to be going home with him. We’ve never had a situation like this, and thought you just forgot to call and let us know someone else was picking her up.”
Not an excuse. I don’t give a crap that it’s never happened before; it happened to my child. No amount of excuses is going to make me worry any less. “Whether it’s happened before or not, my daughter was kidnapped, under your school’s watch. That’s unacceptable. Why do you send a form home to fill out who can pick the children up, if you don’t follow it?”
The principal starts to answer, but I cut her off.
“Who lets a child go off with someone they’ve never seen pick her up before? Your administration needs to do something, fix something, or this will happen again. And I’d rather not take action against the school.”
The principal's face grows red. “Again, we are so sorry for what happened. We have a meeting tonight at six with the faculty and the administration to discuss it.”
I really want to go off on this lady, but I decide that’s enough for right now. “My daughter is not to leave with anyone else but me ever again, unless you see my face and I say it’s okay. I’ve already told Emily to wait in the office for me every day, until I pick her up, so something like this doesn’t happen again.”
I storm out of her office and out of the school, madder than hell.
The chilly air outside quickly makes me regret not getting a ride from Damon. It is around forty degrees outside and the coat I am wearing isn’t really meant for this kind of weather. Power walking seems to help a little, but not enough. I shiver all the way to the office.
“Sorry I’m late,” I tell Harper, taking off my coat and sitting down. “Had to take care of some things.”
“I heard what happened, girl. Why didn’t you text me? I would’ve helped you look for her. How is she? Did they put him in jail?”
I fill her in on the details and get to work. It’s bad enough I’m late, so I don’t want to get behind on my work too. Especially after Lex being so kind about me coming in late. This job is going to be the only thing helping me to pay for the lawyer to help me keep Chris away from her.
After a while, when I get caught up, he calls me into his office.
“I just wanted to say I’m glad your daughter’s home safe. I’m not sure what your plans are, but I wanted to recommend a lawyer. He’s a friend and handles family cases. Of course, it’s up to you who you use.”
I take the card and thank him. It’s the next step. Even though it’ll cost me a fortune, I need to be certain that Chris can’t come near her again. If it takes a couple thousand dollars to do that, then so be it.
Back at my desk, Harper hands me a stack of faxes, and I get back to work. Things are piled up and need to get done so I can get the hell out of here. I just want to hold Emily in my arms. It’s doubtful I’ll ever feel like she’s safe at school after this.
When the clock strikes three, I say bye to Harper and get the hell out of Dodge. Just like every other day, Damon is waiting outside to take me to get Emily.
“How’d it go this morning?” he asks. “Surely they understand what happened was completely ridiculous.”
“They made excuses. Can you believe it?”
“Not surprised.”
When we get to the school, I go in and get Emily from the office. At least they can listen to directions. If only they followed the rules last week, none of this chaos would have ever happened.
“Thanks for keeping my daughter safe,” I said slyly, leaving the office.